[kat]

Great idea and it’s a really cool sketch. I am intimidated by such perspective. Your latest block in is really good also. You have a wonderful spirit of taking on challenging subjects. Confidence shows in your bold brush strokes in oil too. Don’t loose that. Color is quite subjective in my opinion. The bigger problem is when you see too many nuances and can’t concentrate on the main values. There is a video on Youtube, a watercolor artist painting a face in greenish colors, but with correct values, and it all works. Stan Miller I think. I recently came across a beautiful watercolor by Zorn where the lady’s face is clearly green.

[kat]

I am not keeping up very well. I had a moment of lack of confidence yesterday, and I couldn’t draw anything good. I drew this pose 3 times. I think this one is the 4th. So very late last night I sketched this version, but there are problems with the structure again. I had a particularly difficult time with the eyes, and this must be because my structure is off, correcting it again today and rendering. I need fresh eyes to look at it. The reference for the drawing is from NMA image portfolios. I don’t think that I will have a lot of time to draw tomorrow, but I have a plan to practice on post it notes. That’s an idea taken from Chris Legaspi’s YouTube channel.

Day 12 

[kat]

Day 11

This is the only drawing from today that I want to post, the others will stay behind the scenes.

[kat]

Thank you Petru. I should have probably taken a simple construction approach in drawing the 3D model, but I wanted to look into planes in detail. It’s a good idea to stick to loose construction drawings. I am actually doing Steve Huston’s course. It’s really great!

[kat]

Hello Isabella, I love these delicate portraits. Lovely colors that make each one stand out, and look cohesive all together at the same time. Wonderful inspiration with a lot of attention in the execution. I want to try oils someday also. The oil portrait course here is a constant reminder haha

[kat]

Thank you so much Isabella for your kind words of encouragement )

Day 10

Corrections and rendering on the drawing from the 3D model.

[kat]

I love your portrait of the bearded man! To me it has a cool, spontaneous energy, all the while being very structured and intentional. I would have a really hard time with an angle like the second one.

[kat]

Thank you for the encouragement dear @GR

Thank you Erik. I did see the impressive mural you are doing though. I am not familiar with gouache and I wasn’t sure what I was doing, so it was a disappointment because I had something else in mind haha. It’s ok, I will give Vermeer another shot. I think that this is great place to post your honest daily progress. There is too much pressure to post beautiful works on Instagram, to show your best, so I wouldn’t be able to do a challenge like this on IG. I am happy that I can do it here )

[kat]

Day 9

Today I started working on the planes from the 3D model. There are quite a few things that I want to correct before rendering, especially the lower portion of the face. I found that working from the 3D model is really helpful to understanding the head. I feel like this is what I should be doing in between drawing realistic portraits.

[kat]

Day 8

I had a pretty bad headache yesterday. I tried drawing a sculpture because I was interested in the value relationships and transitions. There are quite a few things wrong with structure. The nose should be longer and the right eye is too high.

[kat]

Day 7

Didn’t have time to sit down today. It’s a late night gouache sketch. I wanted to try gouache for a long time, and I just got some paints. I don’t want to post this, but I will stay true to my challenge.

[kat]

Day 6

Failed attempt at another impossible angle. Poor sheet of paper.

[kat]

Just a little note to myself. Using a lighter range of graphite pencils HB/2B, mostly HB is more comfortable for me. Lighter pencils leave room for adjustments. I can always make things darker with 3B/4B in the end.

[kat]

Day 5 Yesterday’s sketch with with additional shading this morning.

[kat]

Hello Kelsey, I really like your watercolor sketch. It caught my attention right away. It’s such a lively, vibrant medium. I think that the spontaneous nature of the medium itself makes up for certain mistakes, especially in sketch style. I know that cotton paper plays a huge part in how much you can control the medium. I only use cotton paper for watercolor, which I prefer to get in sheets and stretch over a varnished wood panel. It’s more economical for me.

[Author]

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